


Akstyr's Ladies

by KtwoNtwo



Series: The Emperor's Edge Collection [3]
Category: The Emperor's Edge Series - Lindsay Buroker
Genre: Akstyr is a supernatural chick magnet, Cross-posted from EE Forum, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-22
Updated: 2014-01-24
Packaged: 2018-01-09 05:24:44
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,459
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1141987
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KtwoNtwo/pseuds/KtwoNtwo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Being young, a street tough and a student of the mental sciences does not leave much time for romancing the ladies.  Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on your point of view, the ladies seem to come looking for Akstyr.</p>
<p>Previously posted on the EE Forum as three separate stories. Chapters posted in the order they were written not in the order they tie into the stories.  Chapter 2 is the one which gives this piece it's explicit rating.  The other two chapters are more of a teen rating.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Trespassing

Watch was not Akstyr’s favorite job. It ranked a bit higher on the list than cleaning which, in his opinion, was the absolute bottom of the list of jobs he’d had to perform since joining this gang of misfits. Tonight however he thought that watch standing in the cold wet rain might just be worse than assisting Amaranthe on one of her cleaning binges. Why the heck Sicarius insisted on posting watch on a night like this he’d not been able to figure out. The rain was coming down in sheets and it was as black as the inside of a smelter chimney. Emperor’s warts, if you couldn’t see your hand in front of your face how could you tell if someone was sneaking up on the barn that the group was currently using to sleep in?

“Use your ears,” Sicarius’ voice hissed out of the darkness and Akstyr jumped. For a moment he was sure that Sicarius with his knowledge of the sciences has somehow mastered the discipline necessary to read his mind but Sicarius’ voice continued “No lights. Basilard is also on watch. Amaranthe will relive you in 4 hours.” He heard the barn door shut gently.

Whew. Sicarius wasn’t reading his mind. He was just giving instructions. As if the man wasn’t scary enough physically, the idea of Sicarius as a mind reader gave Akstyr the shivers. At that point the meaning of Sicarius’ comments registered. Oh just wonderful. They were doubling up. That meant that everyone was going to be grumpy with lack of sleep in the morning. Another morning of Maldynado and Yara sniping at each other was not something he was looking forward to. Why the two of them didn’t run off and engage in some mutual spelunking Akstyr didn’t know. They were clearly attracted to each other. Life on the run with a price on your head had the distinct possibility of being rather short. You had to grab what pleasures you could when they were available. It was amazing to him that neither of the two had managed to understand that concept.

Akstyr sighed. It wasn’t like he’d find anyone to grab a night of pleasure with. Not without paying for it at least. Even that option had been denied him since they’d been mucking about in the boonies and staying in abandoned buildings if and when they could find them. At least in Stumps you had a chance. Here, at this abandoned farmstead on the outskirts of a minor village his opportunities for companionship were exactly none.

A squelching sound jarred him out of his reverie. Basilard came around the corner of the building. “Time to move,” Basilard signed his hands barely visible in the rain.

“Anything I should know about,” Akstyr asked in reply.

“Big mud puddle,” was the signed response.

“Bigger than that one?” Akstyr asked pointing at the growing bit of sloppy ground where the water from the roof of the dilapidated barn was pooling.

Basilard signed “Yes. Small pond by morning.”

“Wonderful.” Akstyr turned and started toward the other side of the barn. It was slow going. He attempted to stay under the overhanging eaves but the dilapidated nature of the barn meant that there were gaps where water streamed off the roof and straight down like some sort of waterfall. By the time he arrived at the other side he was even more soaked than he had been originally.

Akstyr huddled under the overhang next to the end of the barn. At least on this side he was sheltered from the wind. He could barely see the puddle Basilard had warned him about. It was half way between the barn and the ruined farm house. Basilard was correct, he concluded after looking at it. If the rain kept up at this level it would be a small pond by morning.

*****

Two hours later, after switching sides with Basilard several more times, the rain slacked off. The wind had increased but that had the side effect of breaking up the clouds so that the full moon cast intermittent light on the abandoned farmstead. The dilapidated buildings in the moonlight looked downright eerie. Enough to cause someone with a good imagination a real case of the heebie-jeebies, Akstyr thought, complete with chills down your back. Unfortunately, the chills down his back were caused by wet clothes and the wind that swirled about leaving nowhere to avoid it. It actually wouldn’t be too bad if he could get a bit dryer. Sicarius would have his hide if he nipped inside to get something to dry off with so that option was unavailable. He wondered if he could use the sciences to help.

Hmmm. There was that exercise in telekenetics he’d been looking at just the other day. The notes in his book had said to start small. Water droplets were small. Maybe he could move the water droplets out of his clothes. Akstyr concentrated using the form and discipline outlined in the exercise. He focused on the water in his clothing and concentrated, willing it to move out of his shirt and down onto the ground. Several minutes later he was pleased to discover that his shirt was now only slightly damp but the ends of his pants were dripping and he was standing in the middle of a puddle of water. Well, I’ve moved the water from my shirt down into the end of my pants. Not bad for a first try he thought. He stepped out of the puddle and moved to a dryer patch of ground to try again. Just as he was about to start the mental exercise he thought he saw something move near one of the outbuildings that sat beyond the abandoned farm house.

Akstyr backed up into the shadow of the barn. He watched the area around the outbuilding closely to see if he could determine what was moving. The moon was peaking in and out of the clouds causing the shadows to stretch and writhe as if alive. Akstyr wasn’t sure but something seemed to be moving over there, taking advantage of the shadows to move closer to the farmhouse and by extension the barn. Well, two could play that game Akstyr thought as he started to move toward the farmhouse using the shadows all the while keeping an eye on where he thought the movement had been. At this point he decided it wasn’t worth alerting the group or Basilard. What if it was just his imagination, the wind and the moonlight playing tricks on him?

As he crept carefully toward the farmhouse Akstyr wished he had a crossbow instead of the short blade he was wearing. He was better with a crossbow than with a blade but the weather would have made the bowstring wet rendering the weapon useless. Nothing more worthless than a wet crossbow except someone who roused the group just because he happened to be jumping at shadows. That was something he’d learned the hard way during his stint with the Black Arrows gang. No one appreciated a false alarm in the middle of the night and the consequences of a mistake varied from painful to potentially fatal.

He was beginning to wonder if he had imagined seeing movement when he spotted it again. This time he was close enough to determine that it was a man-sized figure quickly gliding across a lighter patch of moonlit ground between shadows. Once the figure gained the shadows it went so still he lost it in the gloom. Was Sicarius playing tricks to keep them awake? He’d done that before when he thought the group was not being assiduous enough about keeping watch. No, Akstyr thought, what he’d seen didn’t move like Sicarius. While Sicarius was smooth and quick he moved like a fighter. This figure glided and flowed more like a dancer he’d once seen perform at the Pirate’s Plunder.

If the figure continued in the same direction it had been heading then he might be able to cut through the shell of the farm house and get a good look at whoever it was. Asktyr moved quietly to the farmhouse wall and then pulled himself up and through a gaping window frame. The inside of the house was dark and cold. The floor appeared to be solid but he’d still have to be careful in case there were holes or other hazards that he couldn’t see in the limited light. He moved carefully around the edge of the room and through a doorway angling his path toward the other side of the house. In short order he found himself standing in an interior doorway looking into the front room of the farmhouse. The window frames had long been missing their windows however the front door was still on its hinges, barely, and was swinging slightly to the wind from outside. As he stopped to watch the door stopped swinging and slowly started opening inward as if pushed by someone entering the room. Asktyr settled in the shadow of the interior doorway and waited.

The door opened fully. At the very same instant the full moon shown through a gap in the clouds and Akstyr got a good look at the person standing in the doorway. He stifled a gasp. The most gorgeous woman he’d ever seen had pushed open the door and was looking curiously around the room. She was taller than average, several inches under six feet he estimated. What looked to be long brown hair hung straight to her waist. She was dressed in some sort of light, long sleeved, flowing dress that hung almost to the floor. Bare feet peaked out from under the hem. Her face and hands were pale and delicate. She had a bracelet of heavy golden links on one wrist and what looked like a chunky signet ring on the opposite hand. She didn’t appear to be cold. No she seemed to be looking around for something and when she focused on the shadow where he was standing he realized with a start that she was looking for him. It was obvious, she’d spotted him moving from the barn and was pulling the same move on him that he’d tried on her. This really sucked donkey’s balls, Akstyr concluded.

“Well,” her voice was low and melodious, “what have we here?” she asked the room at large. “A traveler maybe?” she continued.

Akstyr felt her gaze focus on him as if he’d been skewered with a crossbow bolt. She could see him despite the shadows, he just knew it.

“Will you come and speak with me?” she asked.

It didn’t seem to be a request, Akstyr thought. It seemed to be more like an order no matter how politely and softly made. Akstyr almost stepped out into the room before he caught himself and remained still.

“Oh, a strong one,” she smiled, “and cautious too.”

There was something about this lady and her voice that set off every self-preservation instinct developed from his life on the streets of Stumps. There was something about her that said _this lady is dangerous run away as fast as you can_  but his street instincts told him that she was a predator who would chase him down and kill him if he did so. Therefore, Akstyr stayed still barely daring to breathe.

She slowly paced toward where he was standing. She stopped just out of arms reach and looked directly into his eyes. “Why are you here?” she asked.

He looked at her. She was so beautiful. How could such a wonderful female be dangerous? He really should tell her about… Dung, she was attempting to influence his mind he realized. It might be telepathy. It could be another form of mental coercion. He’d read about both but hadn’t ever expected to encounter a practitioner with the proper discipline or power in Turgoinia. _Eat street_ , he thought forcefully just in case she was reading his mind and then in desperation started doing the only thing he knew that might give him some mental protection. It was a set of exercises that were supposed to prepare the mind for particular disciplines in the sciences. The book had mentioned that they were also good for protecting oneself from telepathic coercion.

She looked a little surprised and cocked her head then moved closer.

Akstyr kept up the mental exercise. It appeared to be working. Unfortunately, it also limited his ability to move. The concentration required meant that he just couldn’t keep up the exercise and do much of anything else. She stopped right in front of him and he saw her take a breath. He realized with a shock that he’d not seen any evidence of her breathing as she had approached. Had he not noticed or was she not breathing? She was also close enough so he should be able to feel her body heat but he couldn’t feel any warmth coming from her. He couldn’t spare the capacity to figure it out and still keep doing the mental exercises. In that moment, Akstyr realized that he was so screwed.

She smiled and said “Interesting.” Then she reached out and placed a cold hand on the side of his face. “I like your courage and your control. It’s been a long time since anyone has been able to resist me,” she commented looking directly into his eyes.

Before Akstyr could determine her intent her hand moved from his face around to the back of his neck and she proceeded to kiss him. Her lips were cool and moist. Her tongue probed tentatively then more demandingly. She pressed her body up against his and her other hand snaked around his back pulling him close. She was quite a bit stronger than she looked. Despite the mental exercises Akstyr felt himself responding to her advances. Well, if he was dead anyway he might as well kiss her back he thought and proceeded to do so to the best of his ability.

Just as he was about to pass out from lack of air she released him and backed away. She gave a low chuckle. Then she looked him directly in the eyes again “I give you a boon,” she stated. “You and your group may stay in my territory three nights and I will trouble you not,” she smiled fully then revealing white teeth with a pair of incisors that were distinctly pointed. “After that, you all are fair game.”

Looking into her eyes Akstyr suddenly felt weary and weak. His brain felt sluggish and the mental exercises didn’t seem to be working anymore. His thought as he crumpled to the floor was that at least he’d had a wonderful kiss before he died.

*****

Much to his surprise Akstyr realized that he wasn’t dead. He seemed to be dry, warmly wrapped in a blanket and laying on something that wasn’t quite as hard as a floor. A hand rested for a moment on his forehead.

“The fever is gone now,” Amaranthe’s voice said. “I’ve never seen one come and go that fast.” Her voice sounded concerned.

“Over extending in the mental sciences will cause that reaction,” Sicarius stated in that flat tone of his.

“And all that babbling about the dangerous woman with the fangs and three days?” Amaranthe asked softly.

“I found no evidence,” he heard Sicarius reply.

“He didn’t just walk over and get into the farmhouse and collapse,” Amaranthe continued. “Something caused him to go over there.”

“Yes,” Sicarius’ voice agreed.

Akstyr attempted to open his eyes. He was exhausted and sore but he had to convince them. They couldn’t stay here. Just before he’d passed out he’d realized why the lady seemed so familiar. She matched the tales about bloodsucking demons his mother had told him to scare him quiet when he was very young. He managed to get his eyes cracked open and extricated his hand from the blanket to grab at Amaranthe to get her attention. His arm seemed awfully heavy as he reached toward her.

At the very same time he heard footsteps and Maldynado voice. “Here’s the tea boss.” He continued conversationally, “Looks like our sleepyhead is waking up,” then he added, “Hey, where did he get that bracelet?”

Akstyr looked at the hand he’d extended toward Amaranthe. There on his wrist was a familiar bracelet of heavy gold links.


	2. Rite of Spring

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aka the infamous "Akstyr and the tree" incident. This is explicit so please skip unless you are prepared to deal with nudity and sexual content.

It was the first truly pleasant day of spring in Turgonia and the weather was balmy. Not a cloud in the sky and it was just the right temperature for a pleasant walk in the woods. Not that Akstyr noticed. He was too busy being irritated and stomping through the underbrush in a heavily wooded section of the lakeshore.

They’d moved the hideout from the basement of the pumping station out to the locomotive boneyard several days before. Amaranthe was almost back to normal after the markarovi mauling she’d sustained in the dam. He still felt guilty that he hadn’t been able to do anything about the infection. Amaranthe had told him that if he hadn’t fixed what he had, she’d likely have died from the wounds before the infection even took hold. He didn’t really believe her. Ever since they had got back to Stumps he’d been attempting to get the concepts and techniques from the book On Healing firmly in his brain so that if something else happened he’d never have to face a visibly angry Sicarius snarling “heal her” ever again.

Unfortunately, attempting to study in the hideout right now was an exercise in frustration. Basilard was quiet but once he started cooking the aroma became very distracting. Not having enough food for most of one’s life tended to make you hyper aware of any opportunity for eating. Having Books available for translations was handy but the lectures that inevitably went with his help were more annoying than useful. As if Akstyr hadn’t managed to survive in the streets on his own for the last eight years. He really didn’t need some bookworm like Books second guessing his actions and critiquing his attitude. Amaranthe currently was in full on cleaning mode since the move and she’d been grabbing anyone within arm’s reach to help her out. The only one of them who had escaped this fate was Sicarius. The man seemed to have a sixth sense about when to disappear. Then there was Maldynado. The warrior cast peacock seemed to delight in sharing his tales of success with women all the while tweaking Akstyr about his lack of experience. Of all of the annoyances that one was the worst.

Akstyr pushed through the brambles into a small sun dappled little clearing. The only thing marring the idyllic nature of the place was the fact that someone, probably some warrior cast dolt, had used one of the trees for sword practice. He’d most likely been drunk, Akstyr thought, given the nature of the slices in the tree’s bark. He dropped the bag containing his book and plopped down on a nice patch of grass at the base of the battered tree. None of the rest of the team would follow him here. He could be alone and maybe, just maybe, make some progress. He dug the book out of the bag and settled back to study.

****

Several hours later Akstyr looked up at the sky. It was almost noon judging from the position of the sun. The clearing was warm and comfortable. The grass was soft. There was a pleasant green scent from the trees. He felt relaxed. Really relaxed, as if someone was rubbing his back and shoulders as he leaned against the tree. _No_ , he thought to himself, _that really is a hand massaging the back of my neck and another one playing with my hair!_

Those realizations lead Akstyr to another discovery. There really was such a thing as muscle memory and Sicarius had trained it into him. He went from relaxed to movement in a heartbeat. He grabbed the hand in his hair, twisted and rolled so he could see who was touching him without allowing them to get away. Sicarius, of course, would have ended the roll on his feet with a knife at the offending party’s throat. However Akstyr ended up flat on his back with the person attached to the hand lying on top of him.

_Pisspot full of …_ Akstyr’s thought was interrupted when he realized that he was looking into the face of the absolutely gorgeous girl who had landed on top of him. A heart shaped face, skin the color of almonds, dark brown eyes and green hair. Akstyr blinked. Yes, her hair was green. It didn’t look dyed green. It looked like a natural dark green the color of oak leaves.

Completely surprised by her appearance all Akstyr could manage to say was “Uhhh” before she wrenched her hand from his grip and scrambled off him.

Akstyr rolled again and came up with one foot and one knee on the ground facing the direction the girl had moved. She was still on her backside, scrambling to put some distance between herself and him. She wasn’t armed and didn’t look terribly threatening. In fact, she looked a bit scared. She was dressed in a short pale green shift that reminded him of leaves. She was moving awkwardly and Akstyr froze when he realized why. There was blood oozing from her right leg.

When she realized that he wasn’t moving she stopped too. _Emperor’s warts. Now what do I do?_  Akstyr thought. _I know I didn’t cause that injury._

_Is this a trap?_  was his next thought. _No,_  he concluded. _No enforcer or army officer would wound a civilian just to catch me. I’m not that important or valuable. I’m nothing compared to the million ranmya bounty on Sicarius’ head_. _So who was she and how did she get that slice on her leg?_ More to stall for time than anything else Akstyr decided to see if he could get her to talk. It always seemed to work for Amaranthe.

“Err, Hello,” he said tentatively. “Umm, sorry ‘bout grabbing you. Uh you kind of surprised me. I didn’t know you were hurt.”

_Oh great, that was really smooth numb-nuts_ , he thought to himself.

The girl, no she was a young woman, just looked at him. He could see now that she was in pain as well as being scared. “So who are you and what are you doing out here?” he asked, still not moving. Her body language reminded him of a hurt wild animal. Skitish but too hurt to want to move if movement was not necessary.

_This really sucks donkey balls_ , he thought. _If I move she’s going to bolt and most likely bleed out. I’m not good at calming people down by talking, that’s Amaranthe’s talent. Well, maybe I can try what Maldynado did when he was trying to catch that chicken. No that won’t work_ , he mused.  Maldynado had chased the chicken all over the fish cannery before Sicarius had finally snagged it.”

Meanwhile Akstyr’s mouth seemed to be running without him thinking much about it. “Is alright. I’m not going to hurt you. I can help.”

The young woman was trembling a bit now. _Great. Probably shock_ , Akstyr thought. _I’m not exactly sure what the science can do for shock. I don’t even know if there is anything in the book about that anyway._

Regardless, he was going to have to do something for her. The key was to move slowly and stay low. Should be less threatening that way. Keeping up a litany of inane comments Akstyr started to move carefully toward her. He was a bit surprised when she didn’t attempt to move away as he got closer.

Finally he was up next to her within reach of her injured leg. It was cut in several places. The slices looked like they’d been made with a sword. Neither deep but they were long and gaped enough to bleed when she moved. A normal healer would put in stiches but Akstyr knew he could fix this if she’d let him.

He sat down and reached out to gently touch her leg. She twitched a little but she allowed his hand to remain. He slowly put his other hand on her leg then Akstyr closed his eyes and concentrated. He’d just reviewed the section regarding wounds and trauma so it was clear in his mind what he needed to do.

****

Akstyr dropped out of the healing trance with a mental thud. That hadn’t been too bad. At least this time he’d not had Sicarius glowering at him. He looked carefully at his handiwork. Just a slight red line where each of the cuts had been. Akstyr suddenly became aware that the leg he’d been working on was extremely shapely. Immediately thereafter it dawned upon him that the shift the woman was wearing was very short and one of the cuts had been almost under the hemline.

_Uh oh,_  he thought as he glanced away slightly embarrassed. _I better move my hands quick before she slaps me or something._

Akstyr started to remove his hands from her thigh but found that she’d captured one of them with hers. He looked at her face, confused. She had her head cocked at him. Assessing. Looking for something, he had no idea what. Whatever it was she seemed to see it because she smiled at him and reached out with her other hand to touch him on the chest.

It was strange, he thought, that she hadn’t said anything. Maybe she didn’t speak Turgonian. She didn’t look like a foreigner tho. There was something about her that was very familiar. A description he’d heard once or a picture he’d seen or something. The green hair was really important somehow.

What happened next drove all of those musings completely out of his head. Still smiling at him the girl tugged at his hand to move him closer. Then her other hand snaked around the back of his neck as she pressed her lips to his.

It was not a simple thank you kiss. She smelled like spring grass and tasted slightly of mint. Her mouth was soft and open. Her tongue probed at his lips then slipped inside, exploring. Her hand on his neck ran up into his hair and her other hand moved his up to her breast. Akstyr’s body reacted and his head reeled. She withdrew just before he thought he’d pass out due to lack of air.

He attempted to say something but “ahh” was the only thing that seemed to want to come out of his mouth.

She was smiling at him still so he guessed that his kissing skills hadn’t been disappointing on her end. She also had a bit of a questioning look on her face. She seemed to be waiting for something. He had the feeling that she was asking if he wanted to continue.

Akstyr’s mind kicked into overdrive. If she wanted what he thought she did then he’d have to be careful. Akstyr wasn’t about to do to someone else what had happened to his mother. There was no way that Akstyr was going to take any chance that some kid would end up on the streets like he had. Once again his mouth started into motion before he could come up with some smooth way to express the concept. “I don’t have any,” he broke off embarrassed. “If you want to we can’t,” he tried again. He sounded like an ass. How the heck did Maldynado bring up that subject anyway?

Before he could sputter anything else she put a finger to his lips and made a shushing noise. She then proceeded to climb into his lap and place her forehead against his. She started talking in a musical alto. She spoke a liquid series of syllables that he couldn’t identify as a particular language, but somehow he still understood the meaning. She was telling him not to be concerned about consequences there wouldn’t be any. That this was a sacred day, a sacred time and she wanted to share it with him. She was asking because it needed to be something that they both wanted and it was bad, no more like profane, without consent.

He pulled back from her a bit to look at her face. Given that she was now sitting in his lap he knew that she could tell the state of his interest. She was so beautiful with the sunshine shining off her hair. Did he believe her? He wanted to believe her. What finally convinced him was how still she was. She was simply waiting for him to make up his mind.

She saw when he made the decision in his face and he barely had time to say “Yes” before she was kissing him again.

Her hands seemed to be everywhere. One slid up under his shirt while the other played about with the top of his breeches. She unbuttoned his shirt then gave him a little push and toppled him over onto his back landing on top of him. His hands wandered, seemingly of their own accord and ended up gripping the round globes of her ass. He pulled at her shift with one hand, tugging to get her out of it while she was attempting to get his shirt off while kissing his chest at the same time.

She giggled and squiggled out of the shift leaving him holding it. Completely nude she sat straddled across his hips and scrunched her nose at him. Her look seemed to be saying "You’ve got too many clothes on!”

Akstyr tossed the shift aside and half sat up removing his shirt in the process. That won him a smile and another of those breath stealing kisses.

She shifted a bit and her busy hands were now undoing his breeches. One hand worked at removing them while the other...Akstyr almost lost it right then.

Soon he was as nude as she. Which, judging from her expression, was just what she wanted. Another gentle shove and he was flat on his back again. Nothing between them. Skin on skin. Her hands roaming about his shoulders and chest. His hands coming to rest on her breasts. She moved her hips and he was inside her.

“Oh ancestors!” All coherent thought fled in a wave of sensation and need.

He grabbed her at the waist to ensure she didn’t stop but she was already moving. Setting a rhythm. Gradually increasing speed. Her eyes were closed in pleasure. Akstyr moved with her unable to do anything else until she moaned and shuddered on top of him. Then the world exploded.

****

Some indeterminate amount of time later Akstyr started thinking again. He knew there was something that he ought to remember but the sunshine was warm and he was comfortable snuggled up against her. It was something important. Just then she turned around in his arms and hugged him. Thinking was suddenly the last thing on his mind. No, now he was going to see if any of Maldynado’s vaunted techniques worked half as well as claimed.

****

It was late afternoon when Akstyr woke up. The sun was no longer directly shining in the clearing and the air temperature was cooling. He looked around. The girl was nowhere in sight. Still nude Akstyr got up and examined the clearing. The only obvious way out was the path he had used coming in. There was no evidence that she had left that way. Looking at the rest of the edge of the clearing there was no indication that anyone had pushed through the undergrowth. No foot prints, no broken branches or crushed vegetation, no nothing. A slight rustling of leaves from the area of the tree he’d been sitting under when the girl had first touched him attracted Akstyr’s attention. His book and bag were still sitting there just where he had left them. The tree, however, looked different. The cuts in its bark were no longer weeping sap. In fact they were now only faintly visible and it was clear that they would fade completely in time.

Staring at the tree Akstyr suddenly remembered. There had been a mural in the Pirate’s Plunder. He’d seen it at Amaranthe’s birthday party. It was one of the few pieces of artwork in the building that didn’t have a nautical theme. A part of the painting showed a group of green haired women dancing naked around a tree. One of the working girls had explained that it was supposed to represent an ancient celebration of spring. Bel…something she had called it. It was a rite meant to ensure the fertility of the land. The green haired women were supposed to be nature spirits of some sort. Enthusiastically amorous nature spirits given the depictions of the same tree dancing women in the rest of the fresco. Her opinion was that the celebration was just an excuse to go out and screw in the woods on a nice day in spring.

It all made sense now. The green hair, the injury, the language and even the healed tree. Today, he remembered, was also exactly halfway between the solstice and the equinox. Books had said something about it this morning in a half-hearted attempt to get out of training. That’s why the day was special.

Akstyr smiled. He suspected where the girl had gone and knew what he wanted, no needed, to do now. He walked over to the tree, put his arms around it and rested his head against its smooth bark. “That was wonderful,” he whispered. “Thank you.” He thought he felt a smooth hand caress the side of his face. He stood there for a long time.

****

Amaranthe was on her second run of the lake trail that day. She usually didn’t take a run in the afternoon but she’d needed to think and, to be honest, brood. How in all her ancestors was she going to get Sicarius and Sespian so they could have their talk without the latter ordering the arrest of the former? The visibility quotient of the current crop of potential jobs left much to be desired. If this kept up they’d all be old and gray before the Emperor would even notice their activities. Amaranthe stopped to catch her breath. _Come on girl. Leaders must think positive,_  she told herself. _Something else like the water poisoning is bound to come up. Maybe the Imperial Games this summer will provide an opportunity_ , she thought.

Having caught her breath Amaranthe looked around. The area looked familiar. Oh, this was where she’d seen Akstyr leave the trail this morning. She didn’t think he’d seen her. He’d stomped off in some sort of a huff after the morning training session and she’d only by chance noticed him slipping off into the woods during her usual run. _Now where had he gone?_ She wondered. She spotted a small somewhat overgrown trail that he must have used. _I wonder what he found,_  she thought as she turned to follow the trail.

It wasn’t terribly long before the undergrowth gave way to a small clearing. Amaranthe was just about to enter it when she saw Akstyr. He was nude and holding onto a tree oblivious to his surroundings. Amaranthe quietly backpedaled up the trail blushing furiously. There were some things that she knew really didn’t want to observe or interrupt.


	3. Fish Story

Akstyr woke up in a soft bed feeling absolutely horrible. His mouth tasted like the Imperial Army had run through it barefoot and his head was pounding. Even his skin hurt. He’d never felt so hung over in his life, except for maybe after that going away party Maldynado threw him before he left Turgonia for the Kyatt islands. What was worse was that he hadn’t been drinking. He groaned aloud.

A familiar voice asked, “Back with us then?” in slightly accented Turgonian. Tikaya Starcrest he put the name to the voice.

“Uh,” he managed to croak as he opened his eyes and struggled into a sitting position.

She handed him a glass of something that looked like fruit juice. “Drink it all before you try and explain to me why we found you washed up on the beach after having been missing for two days,” she said in a tone of voice that brooked no argument.

He sipped the juice slowly stalling for time. What could he say that would even make sense? He looked around the room for inspiration and realized that Ex-admiral Starcrest was standing in the doorway observing the whole scene. Oh no. He could probably come up with something to satisfy Tikaya but there was no way he’d be able to pull one over on Starcrest.

Akstyr sighed. Better get it over with.

“I was surfing and I got knocked off my board,” he started. “When I tried to get back on I got grabbed by three ladies with fish tales who tied something science based around my neck then hauled me off and kept me in an underwater cave.” It all came out in a rush. “I managed to escape early in the morning. It was all I could do to get all the way out of the water. I didn’t want them to get me again you see,” he trailed off. That was the short version. He wasn’t sure he wanted to tell her about what had happened in the cave and his initial willing participation before he had realized that they were going to try and keep him like someone’s prize stallion.

Tikaya was looking at him with blatant disbelief. “Are you trying to tell me that you were kidnapped by mythological creatures? Mermaids, really?” she scoffed. “You, young man, are going to have to come up with a better story than that before I’ll believe you,” she said as if she was talking to one of her kids. With that she strode out the door past her husband who wisely got out of her way.

Starcrest watched her go then turned back to look at Akstyr. “You know,” he started in a conversational tone, “One thing I learned from all my time at sea was that there are more things in it than even the most fanciful author has ever dreamed.” With that enigmatic statement he pulled something out of his pocket and tossed it so it landed lightly in Akstyr’s lap then left the room.

Akstyr looked down to see a familiar shell necklace that was shining faintly with the power of science.


End file.
